The Denver ethics board said most of the city officials hitching a ride on the inaugural flight from Denver to Reykjavick, Iceland, should pay the full fare, according to a decision released by the board this week.

Denver officials had asked for an ethics board opinion after being offered reduced prices for eight city officials to fly from Denver to Reykjavick on IcelandAir to commemorate the new venture.

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock in January sports a trapper hat, a gift from Icelandair, which begins its flights from Denver to Iceland next month.

The city says the new air service between Denver and Iceland will help travelers connect with many European destinations and could generate as much as $28 million in annual economic impact to the Denver region and create nearly 300 new jobs.

“This flight will allow us to continue to bring new global opportunities to Colorado and to stimulate growth in our economy,” said Hancock when the deal was announced in September. “It will also open our doors to new markets and allow our business and leisure travelers originating in Denver to enjoy an easy one-stop connection to Scandinavia, the U.K. and Europe.”

Hancock is part of the delegation who will be on that first flight, which will also include Chief of Staff Janice Sinden, Aviation Manager Kim Day, Deputy Aviation Manager Eric Hiraga, Senior Director of Research and Air Service Development Laura Jackson, Director of Office of Economic Development Paul Washington, City Council President Chris Nevitt and City Councilman Chris Herndon. A handful of community and business members also will be on board.

IcelandAir offered to pay for the entire trip, which includes two nights in a hotel — a cost estimated to be about $2,000 to $3,500 per person — but the delegation instead wanted to pay “a reduced rate of $1,000 for the airfare and two nights” in the hotel. The city said that $1,000 fare had been a limited-time promotional deal.

To figure out the proper course of action, the city asked the ethics board to weigh in and discussed the matter in a board meeting last month.

Today, the board released its decision — saying that the delegation would be violating the city’s ethics code by accepting the free or reduced fares unless they were available to all city employees. But it did say up to three city representatives could accept the full-price discount “to celebrate the inaugural IcelandAir flight and to assist, as your request indicates, in ‘building a strong foundation for future economic exchange between Colorado and Iceland and to develop long-term partnerships.'”